Agrarian patterns in mountain ecosystems have seen a considerable change in the past decades with a vast proportion of the population abandoning traditional agriculture and diversifying their livelihood options, prima...Agrarian patterns in mountain ecosystems have seen a considerable change in the past decades with a vast proportion of the population abandoning traditional agriculture and diversifying their livelihood options, primarily through out-migration. This trend is especially common amongst the subsistence based family-farming communities in developing countries. This study aims at assessing methods of livelihood diversification and factors influencing farm-exit in Central Himalayan villages of Uttarakhand, India, while trying to understand local perspectives on challenges in pursuing agriculture as a viable livelihood option. We collected qualitative and quantitative data from 951 households across 60 villages evenly distributed across six hill districts of Uttarakhand, using key-person interviews and household surveys. The results of the study highlight that farm-exit is significantly influenced by livelihood diversification, number of migrants, number of female family members, and availability of irrigation facilities. In general, perception of the respondents towards agriculture as a viable livelihood option is rather unenthusiastic, with 87% of the respondents citing human wildlife conflict as the main challenge in pursuing farming, amongst several other challenges. Diversification is an integral component of present rural economy with 80.13% of the total population dependent on more than one source of income, to maintain their livelihoods. However, there is no statistically significant influence of livelihood diversification on annual income of the household. If agro-based entrepreneurial ventures are to be promoted in the region there is an urgent need for timely introduction of radical policy, institutional, and land-reforms. Economic uplifting of the local population through such efforts can also be a possible solution to the growing trends of out-migration in the state.展开更多
Climate change is a global challenge to both sustainable livelihoods and economic development. In Tanzania as in most African countries, farming depends almost entirely on rainfall, a situation that makes agriculture ...Climate change is a global challenge to both sustainable livelihoods and economic development. In Tanzania as in most African countries, farming depends almost entirely on rainfall, a situation that makes agriculture and thus rural livelihoods especially in semiarid environments particularly vulnerable to climate change. This study analyses the impacts of climate change and variability on rural livelihoods with particular focus on agricultural production, food security and adaptive capacities in semiarid areas of Tanzania. The methods used in this study included focus group discussions, key informant interviews, household surveys and field observations. Results from the study indicate that communities understood climate change in terms of variability in rainfall patterns and amount, temperature patterns, wind, water availability, increased incidences of drought and decreased agricultural productivity. Communities in the study area acknowledged that while rainfall amounts have decreased over the last thirty years, temperatures have increased;an experience is also supported by meteorological data. Such changes were claimed to have reduced agricultural productivity particularly due to prolonged drought, inadequate and uneven distribution of rainfall as well as unpredictable onset and ending of rains. Stressors such as crop diseases and pests, low soil fertility and inadequate extension services were also reported to contribute to the decline in agricultural productivity and re-occurrence of food insecurity. In response, communities have developed multiple adaptation strategies, including growing of drought tolerant and early maturing crop varieties, increasing wetlands cultivation, water harvesting for small-scale irrigation and livestock keeping. However, households with limited livelihood assets are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and food insecurity. The study argues that diversification of adaptive strategies, such as water harvesting for small-scale irrigation, integration of livestock and crop展开更多
Environmentally unfriendly Oil exploration activities have been ongoing in the Soku area of the Niger Delta of Nigeria since 1956. This study evaluated the concentration of hydrocarbons and heavy metals in Shellfish a...Environmentally unfriendly Oil exploration activities have been ongoing in the Soku area of the Niger Delta of Nigeria since 1956. This study evaluated the concentration of hydrocarbons and heavy metals in Shellfish and drinking water sources in the study area. It revealed the absence (<0.001 mg/l) of most heavy metals (Ni, Ch, Cd, Pb mg/l) in the water column;a high concentration of the major ion composition of seawater (sulphates 5 - 1018;calcium 0.502 - 53.502;sodium 1.247 - 63.337;potassium 0.508 - 102.745;magnesium 0.354 - 42.574 mg/l);and high PAHs (<0.001 - 0.032 mg/l) levels occurring above WHO limits (0.007 mg/l) with some risk of exposure to cancer. Results from the analysis of shellfish showed that concentrations of chromium and zinc were below permissible limits while cadmium concentrations were slightly above permissible limits of the European Community. Nickel and lead were above permissible limits in the fish samples in all standards while PAHs occurred at the cancer risk levels of 10?6. A review of the public health situation in the Soku area with a view to understanding current trends, sources of perturbations and preferable solutions to the potential public health challenges raised in this study is hereby recommended. Also, this study recommends that relevant agencies and developmental partners should launch a national drive to create awareness among people/environmental/public health professionals’/health workers/administrators on this regional concern.展开更多
Waterlogged soils and submerged sediments in wetlands and agricultural lands used for rice paddies and aquaculture have anaerobic conditions that slow and prevent the photo and microbial degradation of dioxin TCDD (2,...Waterlogged soils and submerged sediments in wetlands and agricultural lands used for rice paddies and aquaculture have anaerobic conditions that slow and prevent the photo and microbial degradation of dioxin TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetracholorodibenzo-p-dioxin), enabling it to persist in environments for long periods. Over 1.6 million ha of land in southern Vietnam were sprayed with 2,4,5-T herbicides (e.g. Agent Orange) contaminated with dioxin TCDD during the Vietnam War (1961-1971);45% of these ha received four or more spray flight missions. Dioxins are endocrine disrupters and may induce cardiovascular disease, growth, and developmental defects, diabetes, hormonal dysfunctions and disruptions, certain cancers, and chloracne. Outpatient screening clinic 2020 data on Vietnamese children suspected of congenital heart disease (CHD) showed the childhood CHD prevalence rate in Vietnam of 13.356/1000, significantly elevated compared to the Asian CHD prevalence rate of 3.531/1000. CHD prevalence rate differences between North Vietnam (2.541/1000) and south of the 17<sup>th</sup> parallel (10.809/1000) were significant. Vietnamese farmers, especially pregnant women whose occupations involve daily contact with soil and sediments where dioxin TCDD persists in the environment may be at risk of dioxin accumulation from dermal exposure and bioaccumulation via diet. There is an urgent need for funded longitudinal genetic and clinical studies to assess CHD and other organ system childhood malformations due to in utero TCDD exposure. We recommend an integrated research design involving 1) site-specific locations that received high volumes and multiple spray loads of herbicides during the Vietnam War;2) soil sampling of submerged and waterlogged soils and sediments where TCDD may not have degraded;3) production areas of agriculture, fisheries, and other aquatic products;4) risk assessment dioxin levels in foods where TCDD is likely to bioaccumulate;5) child-bearing age and pregnant women with potentially high sensitivity to long-term l展开更多
基金the financial support given by the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change (MoEFCC) through the National Mission on Himalayan Studies
文摘Agrarian patterns in mountain ecosystems have seen a considerable change in the past decades with a vast proportion of the population abandoning traditional agriculture and diversifying their livelihood options, primarily through out-migration. This trend is especially common amongst the subsistence based family-farming communities in developing countries. This study aims at assessing methods of livelihood diversification and factors influencing farm-exit in Central Himalayan villages of Uttarakhand, India, while trying to understand local perspectives on challenges in pursuing agriculture as a viable livelihood option. We collected qualitative and quantitative data from 951 households across 60 villages evenly distributed across six hill districts of Uttarakhand, using key-person interviews and household surveys. The results of the study highlight that farm-exit is significantly influenced by livelihood diversification, number of migrants, number of female family members, and availability of irrigation facilities. In general, perception of the respondents towards agriculture as a viable livelihood option is rather unenthusiastic, with 87% of the respondents citing human wildlife conflict as the main challenge in pursuing farming, amongst several other challenges. Diversification is an integral component of present rural economy with 80.13% of the total population dependent on more than one source of income, to maintain their livelihoods. However, there is no statistically significant influence of livelihood diversification on annual income of the household. If agro-based entrepreneurial ventures are to be promoted in the region there is an urgent need for timely introduction of radical policy, institutional, and land-reforms. Economic uplifting of the local population through such efforts can also be a possible solution to the growing trends of out-migration in the state.
文摘Climate change is a global challenge to both sustainable livelihoods and economic development. In Tanzania as in most African countries, farming depends almost entirely on rainfall, a situation that makes agriculture and thus rural livelihoods especially in semiarid environments particularly vulnerable to climate change. This study analyses the impacts of climate change and variability on rural livelihoods with particular focus on agricultural production, food security and adaptive capacities in semiarid areas of Tanzania. The methods used in this study included focus group discussions, key informant interviews, household surveys and field observations. Results from the study indicate that communities understood climate change in terms of variability in rainfall patterns and amount, temperature patterns, wind, water availability, increased incidences of drought and decreased agricultural productivity. Communities in the study area acknowledged that while rainfall amounts have decreased over the last thirty years, temperatures have increased;an experience is also supported by meteorological data. Such changes were claimed to have reduced agricultural productivity particularly due to prolonged drought, inadequate and uneven distribution of rainfall as well as unpredictable onset and ending of rains. Stressors such as crop diseases and pests, low soil fertility and inadequate extension services were also reported to contribute to the decline in agricultural productivity and re-occurrence of food insecurity. In response, communities have developed multiple adaptation strategies, including growing of drought tolerant and early maturing crop varieties, increasing wetlands cultivation, water harvesting for small-scale irrigation and livestock keeping. However, households with limited livelihood assets are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and food insecurity. The study argues that diversification of adaptive strategies, such as water harvesting for small-scale irrigation, integration of livestock and crop
文摘Environmentally unfriendly Oil exploration activities have been ongoing in the Soku area of the Niger Delta of Nigeria since 1956. This study evaluated the concentration of hydrocarbons and heavy metals in Shellfish and drinking water sources in the study area. It revealed the absence (<0.001 mg/l) of most heavy metals (Ni, Ch, Cd, Pb mg/l) in the water column;a high concentration of the major ion composition of seawater (sulphates 5 - 1018;calcium 0.502 - 53.502;sodium 1.247 - 63.337;potassium 0.508 - 102.745;magnesium 0.354 - 42.574 mg/l);and high PAHs (<0.001 - 0.032 mg/l) levels occurring above WHO limits (0.007 mg/l) with some risk of exposure to cancer. Results from the analysis of shellfish showed that concentrations of chromium and zinc were below permissible limits while cadmium concentrations were slightly above permissible limits of the European Community. Nickel and lead were above permissible limits in the fish samples in all standards while PAHs occurred at the cancer risk levels of 10?6. A review of the public health situation in the Soku area with a view to understanding current trends, sources of perturbations and preferable solutions to the potential public health challenges raised in this study is hereby recommended. Also, this study recommends that relevant agencies and developmental partners should launch a national drive to create awareness among people/environmental/public health professionals’/health workers/administrators on this regional concern.
文摘Waterlogged soils and submerged sediments in wetlands and agricultural lands used for rice paddies and aquaculture have anaerobic conditions that slow and prevent the photo and microbial degradation of dioxin TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetracholorodibenzo-p-dioxin), enabling it to persist in environments for long periods. Over 1.6 million ha of land in southern Vietnam were sprayed with 2,4,5-T herbicides (e.g. Agent Orange) contaminated with dioxin TCDD during the Vietnam War (1961-1971);45% of these ha received four or more spray flight missions. Dioxins are endocrine disrupters and may induce cardiovascular disease, growth, and developmental defects, diabetes, hormonal dysfunctions and disruptions, certain cancers, and chloracne. Outpatient screening clinic 2020 data on Vietnamese children suspected of congenital heart disease (CHD) showed the childhood CHD prevalence rate in Vietnam of 13.356/1000, significantly elevated compared to the Asian CHD prevalence rate of 3.531/1000. CHD prevalence rate differences between North Vietnam (2.541/1000) and south of the 17<sup>th</sup> parallel (10.809/1000) were significant. Vietnamese farmers, especially pregnant women whose occupations involve daily contact with soil and sediments where dioxin TCDD persists in the environment may be at risk of dioxin accumulation from dermal exposure and bioaccumulation via diet. There is an urgent need for funded longitudinal genetic and clinical studies to assess CHD and other organ system childhood malformations due to in utero TCDD exposure. We recommend an integrated research design involving 1) site-specific locations that received high volumes and multiple spray loads of herbicides during the Vietnam War;2) soil sampling of submerged and waterlogged soils and sediments where TCDD may not have degraded;3) production areas of agriculture, fisheries, and other aquatic products;4) risk assessment dioxin levels in foods where TCDD is likely to bioaccumulate;5) child-bearing age and pregnant women with potentially high sensitivity to long-term l
